Gluten-Free Recipes

Gluten-Free Recipes for Holiday

Layered Almond, Custard, Chocolate and Toffee Cake

From Chef Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering

We took a drive to IKEA to get some more storage containers. Their restaurant and food market have few gluten-free items except for two almond cakes imported from Sweden and made with almond flour. Of course, I bought them as an indulgence and then made my own with whole ingredients.

The base of this cake is my master almond cake recipe, then custard, toffee pieces and a chocolate glaze.

Gluten-Free Almond Cake Base
Naturally gluten-free, easily dairy-free, and paleo. All the buzz words but still delicious.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 stick (3oz) very soft butter (to make dairy-free, substitute coconut oil or Earth Balance butter)
• 3/4 cup ordinary sugar
• 3 large eggs
• Pinch of salt
• 1 and 3/4 cup of almond meal/flour slightly rounded
• 1 tsp gluten-free baking powder
• no xantham gum needed

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F/ 170°C.
2. Place all ingredients in a 4 cup (1 liter) mixing bowl and beat until well blended and fluffy, around 2 minutes. The mix will go lighter in color as you beat it.
3. Grease and flour two round 9 inch cake pans.
4. Spread in cake mix.
5. Bake in the oven for about 15–20 minutes until well-risen, golden-brown, and set but still soft in the middle. The texture should be similar to rolls of almond paste when cut, but cooked throughout.
6. Remove from oven, immediately run a thin spatula around the inside of the pans, wait 5 minutes, and then turn out to cool. If you leave cake longer, then sugar in cake will stick to the sides of the pan.

Custard Filling

• 1 packet of 4 portion Jello instant vanilla pudding
• 1 and 3/4 cup whole milk or your favorite substitute (to make dairy-free, try coconut milk)

Follow instructions on the Jello packet. Let chill for a few hours, or until it is set.

Glaze

• ½ cup cream (or a dairy-free sub)
• ½ cup chocolate

Melt chocolate in cream until totally smooth. Refrigerate for several hours.

Assembly

1. Put one 9 inch cake on a serving plate and spread with half of the chilled custard.
2. Place the second cake on top and spread with remaining half of the custard.
3. If serving soon, sprinkle with toffee. After one day, the toffee starts dissolving. The original recipe had toffee pieces covered in chocolate so they would stay hard. I used Heath bar milk chocolate toffee bits, which are labeled gluten free. Make your own toffee if you need it to be dairy-free.
4. Remove chocolate glaze from fridge, stir and slowly persuade it to cover the top of the custard and toffee and drip down the sides. Don’t dump it in one blob or custard and toffee will heavily roll over sides.
5. Finish by sprinkling with more toffee. I used Trader Joe’s English toffee bits, which are labeled gluten-free. They are little logs of toffee covered in chocolate and nut sprinkles that stay hard.

About Chef Oonagh Williams

I have written a monthly recipe column for Beyond Celiac since January 2011. I have a Culinary Arts degree as well as celiac disease and other food allergies, so I know food and live this way daily. Remember that most real food is naturally gluten-free until manufacturers mess around with it, and only baking really needs changing. Real food is now being called clean eating.

Obviously talks and appearances are currently canceled, but you can connect with me on Facebook at Gluten-Free Cooking with Oonagh or on LinkedIn. I’ve just filmed recipes at home for New Hampshire’s ABC WMUR’s Cooks Corner and they are being aired. I am also being included in the nationwide library database of online presenters.

For new recipes and lots of advice, my e-cookbook Delicious Gluten-Free Cooking is only $20 and available to download at www.glutenfreecookingwithoonagh.com. It has tips, full-color photos, and recipes like grandma’s comfort soup, shrimp and crab bisque, English trifle, buffalo chicken, tiramisu, dinner party fare, and more. Follow the link to see the table of contents and thumbnail photos of the full-size photos in the e-book.

Raspberry Wine Glazed Ham

From Chef Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering

This recipe was originally from Lithuanian Heritage magazine.

A few years ago, I discovered Carando ham, labeled gluten-free, fully cooked, sliced, spiral boneless brown sugar and spice ham (not salty, sweet or spice) normally $3.99 or $4.99 per lb, in my local Market Basket with long refrigerated shelf life. But before Easter this year, my local Market Basket was selling this ham for $1.99/lb dated to mid May. Remove red foil cover and netting. Hold plastic vacuum wrapped ham over sink, cut open, drain off juices and then I put it in large Ziploc bag on a dinner plate in the fridge. I find that if you separate the spiral slices and immerse them in raspberry wine glaze and refrigerate for 1-2 days, they really absorb the flavor of raspberry, wine and butter.  Then gently reheat in sauce to serve. Ham will darken in color from raspberries, remember raspberry glaze will stain a white tablecloth. I use this ham in so many recipes.

Gluten-Free Raspberry Wine Glazed Ham
also known as kumpis su vyno ir aviečių glajum in Lithuanian

Ingredients: 

• Boneless spiral ham, I normally buy a 3-4 lb ham for just us and other recipes
• ¼ cup dry white wine or sherry – I used Fetzer Gewűrtztraminer
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice – genuine lemon
• 2 teaspoons gf cornstarch
• 1/3 cup seedless raspberry jam
• 1 tablespoon butter
• Juniper berries, Elsbeth, a German lady from my Lithuanian cooking demos, suggested adding 3 crushed Juniper berries (I buy juniper berries from Penzey’s –Nationwide mail order or stores) and one whole clove to deepen flavor as you make glaze, just remove them before you serve

Roughly three times quantity, so more glaze for soaking slices of spiral cut, rather than just glazing whole ham:

• 12 oz jar of seedless raspberry jam
• 2 oz butter
• 3/4 c wine
• ¼ c lemon juice

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325*. Place whole boneless spiral ham in a deep serving dish, If you are leaving the spiral ham whole.
2. In a small saucepan, blend wine and lemon juice with cornstarch.
3. Add about half the jam. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Stir in the remaining jam and butter. Heat and stir until butter and jam are melted.
4. Brush ham with the raspberry glaze. Bake in 325 * oven until glaze is bubbling and browning without burning- 30-40 minutes. Check the internal temperature of the ham. It needs to be cooked or reheated to 140*. Spoon any remaining glaze over ham. With a spiral cut ham in one piece, you can ‘persuade’ the glaze to drizzle down between slices.

Remove from oven, let stand 15 minutes before serving. You can really taste the butter so don’t leave it out.  Or just gently reheat in glaze/sauce.

Other options:

• I used to mix dark brown sugar and spicy brown mustard and use it as a finishing glaze when I cooked the old style ham, that you soaked, drained then cooked in water before finishing in oven.
• Mix orange marmalade (cheapest works), orange zest, concentrated orange juice and a mustard like Koops Arizona heat, labeled gluten free -bell peppers and jalapeňo, sweet spicy.
• Peach preserves, peach or apple juice and hot pepper jelly.
• Chopped pineapple and juice, with pepper jelly or mustard or just brown sugar.
• Free up oven space and place in slow cooker for 4-5 hours on low, basting hourly.
• Quickly reheat in instant pot if you are comfortable with instant pot.  Unfortunately there are too many conflicting timings for reheating cooked ham. Remember it is cooked ham, not raw.  Personally, recipes that tell you if after cooking in instant pot, natural pressure release, checking temperature, it’s not ready, and then having to reheat ham for more time in instant pot is annoying.

Irish Cream Tiramisu Cupcakes

From Chef Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering

I normally make my Tiramisu in an 8×8 pan, with coffee and Kahlua syrup and even more Kahlua in the mascarpone layer. Then, a murder mystery book mentioned tiramisu cupcakes and I thought, why not? I then decided to make them with Irish Cream liqueur for St. Patrick’s Day, tinted green, but not containing mint or pistachio. Why does everyone think green means mint or pistachio? Mine were green for an everything-green party, and they were devoured. People didn’t care that they were gluten-free.

Note: If you Google is Bailey’s gluten-free, they tell you to ask your doctor if you can drink Bailey’s.  If you google is Carolan’s gluten free, they say they are gluten-free. Your decision.

Irish Cream is not very strong so only a mild but delicious flavor. The same quantity of Kahlua or Rum packs a punch.

If you use a different gluten-free flour, then you need to weigh the flour, since cup measurements vary per gluten-free flour blend. King Arthur gluten-free flour is strong so would be less cup measure, regular Pamela’s is a soft blend and might need more.

Watch me make these cupcakes on New Hampshire’s ABC WMUR Cooks Corner:

Gluten-Free Irish Cream Tiramisu Cupcakes
makes 12 cupcakes

Ingredients:

1 x recipe for ladyfingers:

• 2 large eggs, separated
• ¼ c, ¾ oz, 25 g powdered/icing/confectioners sugar
• ¼ c, 2oz, 60g,  granulated sugar – superfine if you have it, or grind granulated a bit finer in food processor.  But it works with ordinary granulated sugar.
• Scant ½ c, 1+1/2 oz, 45 g, my gf flour or cornstarch(cornflour in UK) (I use ½ c less 1 Tbsp)
• On air I said ¼ c of KAF gf flour and substitute probably same ¼ c for KAF wheat flour as kaf is a stronger flour.
• ½ tsp (3ml) gf vanilla extract
• pinch of salt
• ½ tsp (3 ml) gf baking powder
• No xanthan gum needed

Syrup:

• ¾ c (180 ml, 6 fl oz)  very strong coffee or 1 tbsp (15 ml) instant coffee to ¾ c hot water
• 2 tbsp (30 ml) sugar or to taste
• ¼ c  (60ml) Irish cream liqueur
• Mix together until sugar dissolves.

Topping:

• 1lb (500g) mascarpone cheese – don’t substitute regular cream cheese, it just doesn’t taste the same.
• 2 c (480ml) heavy cream
• ¼ c (60ml) powdered sugar
• ¼ c (60ml) Irish Cream liqueur

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375*F
2. In totally grease free bowl whisk egg whites until they are stiff. Add half of the granulated sugar and whisk until stiff again. Fold in remaining half of granulated sugar.
3. In separate bowl, whisk egg yolks, powdered sugar, vanilla and salt until thick and creamy and lighter colored. About 4 minutes. The color will not be the normal vibrant yellow to start due to browning color caused by vanilla extract. If you have vanilla sugar you could use that instead. Also the color will not be as creamy white once whisked due to browning color caused by vanilla extract.
4. Gently fold egg yolk mix into egg white mix, taking care not to deflate. Use a large stainless steel spoon and fold in figure of eight motion. Do not over mix since you will be adding flour mix.
5. Mix together flour and baking powder and sift (preferably but not always possible with some gf flour mixes) onto egg mix and gently fold in, scrape down sides gently with spatula and reach to bottom of bowl with spatula so everything is mixed in, but still keeping fluffiness. This is not a time to beat vigorously.
6. Line a 12 cup muffin/cupcake pan with paper liners. Evenly divide batter among paper cases, reaches about 2/3 full.
7. Bake in oven for about 10 minutes. They won’t rise a lot, don’t really dome and will be a light golden color. It doesn’t matter if you overcook them slightly since you will be pouring coffee syrup onto them which moistens..
8. Remove from oven. Pour about 1+1/2 tablespoons of Irish Cream syrup onto each cupcake. There is very little space between top of cupcake and edge of paper liner, so dribble syrup.
9. Once cupcakes are cold. Whip cream, powdered sugar and Irish cream until nearly stiff. Then add Mascarpone cream and whip together until stiff enough to pipe. Pipe on top of cupcakes and dust with cocoa. Green food coloring optional.
10. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Corn Puff Toffee Treat

From Chef Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering

I personally call this recipe “Christmas Crack” due to it being so addictive! The original recipe used Kix puff corn. I had searched for Kix but my local market didn’t carry it. I searched online but too many people had said they reacted to Kix; it was also not labeled gluten-free. Ingredients are simply puffed corn, oil and salt-baked to a very light, crispy, quite boring cereal.  In previous years, I had bought a huge red bag of caramel corn drizzled with white and dark chocolate from Costco but this is seasonal and not easily found throughout the year. 

So this is my easily prepared, homemade version. Spoil your Valentine or family during February! It will last a few weeks if stored in Ziploc bags.

In my experience, it gets eaten within a week. It’s so addicting!

Preparation

• 1 bag of puffed corn of your choosing. Kix puffed corn is popular but it isn’t certified gluten-free. 
• 1 cup (8 oz) butter
• 1 and 1/4 cups light brown sugar – I didn’t pack the sugar so it was (we thought) less sweet than a commercial bag of caramel corn and we preferred it.
• 2/3 cup light corn syrup – corn syrup is not the same as high fructose corn syrup. In the UK, I would use Lyle’s Golden Syrup which is what we always used for toffee, steamed puddings etc. It’s tasty and not made from corn, but cane sugar. It is available in some regular grocery stores.
• 1 tsp baking soda
• ½ to 1 cup of chopped pecans -optional
• Chocolate chips – optional

How to Cook

1. Combine butter, brown sugar and corn syrup in a large saucepan. (I used an 8-quart stock pan as it makes a lot and needs space to stir in the corn.)  Heat till melted. 
2. Add in baking soda, I whisked it in so no lumps of baking soda, mixture foam up.
3. I added puffed corn with pecans to a large stockpot containing butter mix. Stir really well, there’s a lot, the sauce is sticky and uncooperative. 
4. I lined the jelly roll pan with foil, others recommended using a turkey roaster.  Place in a 250° oven for 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes.  A turkey roasting pan would be far easier to stir as it’s deep compared to a jelly roll pan, but persevere. It stays soft until almost the end of cooking and really crisps up when cold. Let cool, then break apart and enjoy!!  My husband remarked on how crispy it was.  
5. I sprinkled white chocolate chips and some heath bar chocolate chips on top. You can also melt and drizzle white and semi-sweet chocolate over the top.

This recipe almost filled 2 large Ziploc bags. It makes a lot!

You can find Chef Oonagh Williams at Gluten-Free Cooking with Oonagh on Facebook, LinkedIn or her website. Chef Oonagh has a culinary arts degree, celiac disease and other food allergies. Remember most real food is naturally gluten-free until manufacturers ‘mess’ around with it and only baking really needs changing.

Snickerdoodle, Ginger or Chocolate Chip Crisps

From Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering

Last year at this time, I adapted a wheat flour pumpkin snickerdoodle cobbler from Better Homes and Gardens, changing pumpkin filling and snickerdoodle topping. I discovered that some leftover dough cooked on a cookie sheet was lovely, light and crispy.

Gluten-Free Snickerdoodle, Ginger or Chocolate Chip Crisps
Makes about 18 x 2+1/2″ cookies 

Ingredients:

• ¼ c (2oz,56g) soft butter
• ¼ c (2oz, 56g) granulated sugar
• 2 tbsp (30 ml) light/soft brown sugar
• ½ tsp (3 ml) gf baking powder
• 1 tsp (5ml) gf vanilla extract. Use a different extract, almond, lemon, maple etc, to change flavor.
• pinch of salt
• 1 egg
• 1/2c + 2 tbsp (2+1/2 oz, 70g) rice flour – I use imported, Asian white rice flour – Erawan, three elephant logo brand. Very fine, not gritty. Widely available in Asian stores, reasonable price.  I also use it for greasing and flouring cake pans and crispy batter for fish. Picture on Amazon but less expensive in Asian market. amazon.com/Thai-Rice-Flour-16-Basic/dp/B000EYC096
• NO xanthan gum

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350*. I like to line cookie sheet with parchment paper
2. Beat ingredients together until mix is lovely and soft and fluffy.
3. For snickerdoodles. Using one tablespoon/# 60 scoop, drop cookie mix into bowl of sugar and cinnamon, one at a time, shake bowl gently to cover complete ball, then carefully scoop out onto cookie sheet. You can refrigerate cookie mix but it is then quite hard to scoop. Leave cookies about 2 inches apart on cookie sheet, they will spread and flatten.
4. For ginger or chocolate chip. Stir in chocolate chips or ginger, use 1 tbsp scoop and drop onto cookie sheet.
5. Bake in 350 oven for 15-18-20 minutes. Do not use black surface cookie sheet. Bake on middle shelf. Baking on a lower shelf, darkens the bottoms too much. Bake until ginger or chocolate chip cookies are a nice golden brown. They will still be soft and crisp up on cooling.  Snickerdoodles, the cinnamon sugar prevents you seeing obvious color.
6. Remove from oven, let cool, remove to cooling rack. Store in airtight container when totally cool.

Snickerdoodles:

I like to mix 1 tbsp (15ml) sugar and 2 tsp (10m) cinnamon for outside of cookie.

Ginger:

1-2 tbsp (15-30 ml) crystallized ginger chips by gingerpeople.com.  Package has crossed through wheat symbol. Add one teaspoon ground ginger for even spicier. You can roll scoop in regular sugar for crunchier surface.

Chocolate chip:

You know how much chocolate you like, 1-2 tbsp.  I had a chocolate chip cookie made with milk chocolate and it was delicious and not too sweet.  I did use cheese grater for some milk chocolate but chocolate was much too fine. Size of Tollhouse mini semi sweet chocolate chips is best size.

Remember I have a Culinary Arts degree as well as celiac disease and other food allergies so I know food and live this way daily.

Obviously talks and appearances are currently canceled, but you can connect with me on FB at Gluten Free Cooking with Oonagh. I’ve just filmed recipes at home for NH’s ABC WMUR’s Cooks Corner  and they are being aired.   I am also being included in nationwide library data base of on line presenters.

You can find Chef Oonagh Williams at Gluten Free Cooking with Oonagh on FB, web or LinkedIn. Remember most real food is naturally gluten free until manufacturers ‘mess’ around with it and only baking really needs changing. Real food is now being called clean eating.

For new recipes and lots of advice, my Delicious Gluten Free ecookbook only $20 available to download at wwwglutenfreecookingwithoonagh.com , tips, recipes ranging from Grandma’s comfort soup to dinner party fare, full color photos, follow link for list of contents and thumbnail photos of full size photos in ebook.

Easy Pumpkin Soup

From Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering

You’re sure to have canned or fresh pumpkin in November, so this is a soup quickly made to have ready in the fridge.

Easy Gluten-Free Pumpkin Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 cups – use the 15 oz can of pumpkin — just pumpkin in the ingredients
• 1 medium to large onion, peeled and quartered
• 4 medium carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
• 2 celery stalks, trimmed, washed and cut into chunks.
• ½ cup rice
• 6-8 cups chicken stock – I use water plus Orrington’s stock concentrate, labeled gluten-free.
• Freshly ground pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp dried thyme. Check thyme doesn’t smell moldy, some does.

Directions:

1. Chop carrot in a food processor. Remove and put in a pressure cooker or large saucepan.
2. Repeat with onion and celery
3. Add pumpkin to pressure cooker or saucepan, plus rice, water, stock concentrate, pepper, bay leaf and thyme. Stir all together.
4. Pressure cooker, I set 10 minutes cooking time. Stovetop pan, bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer, cover and cook for about 20-30 minutes or until vegetables are lovely and soft. Vegetables will cook quickly when they are chopped small.  Rice will thicken soup.  Depending on quantity of vegetables and how tightly lid fits on regular saucepan, liquid can evaporate.  Also do you like thick or thin soup.

You can add some milk if soup is too thick. Soup should be soft and creamy, so that kids don’t have to chew.  I find the pumpkin taste is stronger than same recipe made with butternut squash, but hearty and warming for the cold weather.

Pumpkin Cake

From Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering

This is the original pumpkin quick bread from my wheat flour days that I’m sure many of you used to bake.  I’ve been making it gluten-free for years, it can be dairy-free without any of the dairy add-ins/ons. Without the cream cheese, a slice or two is a good sustaining breakfast or snack.  

I try and use less xanthan gum or even none if I can, as you get an even fluffier texture when baked. 

There is no xanthan gum in this recipe.

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cake

Ingredients:

• 1/2 of 15 oz can (8oz) roughly 1 cup solid pack pumpkin, not pie filling (ingredient list should only be pumpkin)
• 1c + 2 tbsp sugar (8 oz) 
• 1/2c (4oz) melted coconut oil or almond oil or avocado oil
• 3 large eggs
• 1/3 c water 
• 1 tsp gluten-free vanilla extract 
• 1+1/4 c (5+3/4 oz) my gluten0free flour mix or same by weight of King Arthur Flour gluten-free all-purpose flour (no xanthan gum, no baking powder, only flour blend)
• 1 tbsp (15 ml) gluten-free apple pie or pumpkin pie spice that you know you can eat. So many brands aren’t labeled gluten-free. 
• 1/2 c (2 oz) almond meal 
• 1 tsp (5 ml) baking soda
• 1 tsp (5ml) gluten-free baking powder 
• pinch of salt
• 1/3 c craisins – dried cranberries
• 1/3 c golden raisins (known as sultanas in UK) or ordinary raisins
• 1/3 c chopped pecans or other nuts. 

Cream Cheese Center
Mix together:

• ½ of 8 oz brick of cream cheese softened– I use lite 
• 1 egg yolk or 1 tbsp liquid egg substitute
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp gluten-free vanilla extract 

Streusel
Mix together:

• ¾ c chopped pecans or nut of choice 
• ¼ c sugar 
• 2 tbsp light brown sugar 
• 1 tsp gluten-free apple or pumpkin pie spice

Directions:

1. Put pumpkin, oil, sugar, eggs, water and vanilla in large mixing bowl and beat well for 2 minutes until air bubbles are visible.
2. Stir all dry ingredients together, then add and beat in dry ingredients. Stir in fruit and nuts.
3. Grease and gluten-free flour a 10” bundt pan.
4. Sprinkle half of the streusel around base of pan and pour in half of batter.
5. Gently spread cream cheese mix on top of batter.  It won’t be perfect and might sink a bit.  Try not to spread cream cheese to sides of pan or it will stick.
6. Gently pour in second half of batter and sprinkle second half of streusel on top.
7. Bake in preheated 350 * oven for 45-55 minutes. If top is browning too much, cover with foil. The cake will rise and dome and look cracked from nuts and sugar.
8. I prefer using a bundt pan, the cake looks prettier than in a loaf pan and with the hole in the middle, the cake cooks more evenly with less chance of a raw center. Cake should be well risen, it will be dark brown because of spices, firm at edges and pulling away from sides. I poke at middle of cake with a fork, since I find that most gluten-free cakes need longer cooking than regular flour cakes. Remove from oven, leave to cool for 10 minutes, turn out onto cooling rack and allow to cool completely.  Cake keeps fresh for quite a few days, freezes and nukes well.

Watch me make variations of this cake:

• 2011 on NH’s ABC WMUR Cooks Corner with gluten-free pumpkin bread (recipe slightly changed now)
• 2017 on NH’s ABC WMUR Cooks Corner with gluten-free pumpkin made into ginger cake with crystallized ginger.

For Halloween, make the pumpkin cake in cupcakes, without filling. Frost with cream cheese frosting, tinted orange if you want (mix red and yellow food coloring together.  A recent bottle of McCormick’s food coloring stated it was a gluten-free food.) Top with Halloween candies that are gluten-free. 

Note: cream cheese filling and streusel adapted from a recipe in Port Danby Cozy mystery by London Lovett.

My rice-free GF mix:

• ½ cup potato starch 
• ¼ c tapioca starch from Asian market or Goya or Yoki brand in supermarkets.  
• 2 tbsp amaranth or millet flour: Bob’s Red Mill (millet is roughly one third the price of amaranth, is not so nutritious, but is more readily available.)
• 2 tbsp sorghum flour: Bob’s Red Mill. 

Larger quantity:

• 1 x 14 oz bag potato starch, which is 3+1/2 cups – that’s the size I can buy. 
• 1+3/4 c of Tapioca Starch is 7 oz
• Just under 1 cup of Amaranth or Millet (actually ¾ c plus 2 Tbsps is 4 oz)
• Just under 1 cup of Sorghum (actually ¾ c plus 2 Tbsps is 4 oz)

Making about 7 cups total of mix.

Summer Tomato Corn Galette

From Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering

‘Galette’ just means rustic looking, single crust, free-form pie with a filling and the crust folded partway over the top of the filling. Bon Appétit says, “their imperfections are what set them apart—in fact, the less you do, the better they look.” 

Normally during the warmer months, once a month a girlfriend and I drive down to Wilson Farm in Lexington, MA. For those that don’t know, Lexington (yes the same one you learned about in history) is a very old area of Mass, full of expensive housing and Wilson Farm has 33 acres right in the middle. The farm has been operating there since 1884 with the first farm stand in the 1950’s.  

Most of their fruit and vegetables are locally grown and you can see the fields surrounding the shop, right in the middle of houses. Remember as I always say on NH’s ABC WMUR’s Cooks Corner, most real food is naturally gluten-free until manufacturers mess around with it. Inside, the fruit and veg are arranged like the finest French markets, with fresh baked goods (including gluten-free), large cheese selection, meats, fresh from their kitchen soups, salads, meals and more, as well as flowers and plants.  Weekends and special event times like the tomato festival, there would be samples to try. They have another farm in Litchfield, NH and locally we could look across the river from the Anheuser Busch plant to the red barn building in Litchfield, but had to drive the long way around to get there. 

There is a recipe wall behind the row of checkouts, with lots and lots of free recipe cards for you to take away and make yourself. This is one of the recipes I used to make in wheat flour days and now with fresh local corn and tomatoes abounding, I make it gluten-free.

Gluten-Free Summer Tomato Corn Galette
recipe Cornmeal Galette dough for 1 galette, about 11 inches in diameter

Again with local availability at the moment, I didn’t have regular gluten-free cornmeal so I substituted Krusteaz honey cornbread mix. Bob’s Red Mill carries gluten-free cornmeal and cornflour but one is too gritty and the other is too fine for my taste. 

Ingredients:

• 4 oz, ¾ c KAF gluten-free all-purpose flour – no xanthan gum, no baking powder. 
• 2/3 cup/ 4 oz Krusteaz gluten-free honey cornbread mix, does contain both xanthan gum and baking powder so don’t add any more. Substitute cornmeal/cornflour that you have, by weight, and dough might need more liquid added.
• (1 tsp. Sugar – not necessary if you use Krusteaz)
• salt and pepper
• ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese, I’ve also used Sharp cheddar when I was out of Parmesan
• 6 Tbsp, 3 oz, cold butter, cut into ½-inch slices 
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp ice water

Filling

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 Tbsp. marjoram, chopped, I’ve also used fresh oregano and fresh basil, depending on what you have grown or what’s available 
• Kernels from 2 ears of corn (about 2 cups) Fresh corn makes a phenomenal difference in taste compared to frozen or canned but they still taste good. I cook extra corn day before, then cut off kernels
• 1 large roasted red bell pepper, peeled, deseeded and cut into 1” squares.  I don’t know what this would taste like with jarred peppers, freshly roasted red bell pepper is addictive and freezes well
• ~3 large ripe tomatoes, sliced – I like Campari
• ¾ c 3 oz shredded cheddar

Directions:

1. I put the flour, Krusteaz, (sugar), salt, pepper, and Parmesan cheese in food processor. Add the chilled butter and pulse until butter is small pieces. Or in a bowl by hand or with a pastry blender.  Add the olive oil and ice water, and pulse until the dough begins to come together. It should be soft. Gather the dough with your hands and shape it into a disk. Wrap the disk in plastic and refrigerate for about 1 hour.
2. I like to cook onion in microwave-safe dish until meltingly tender and sweet.  Plus you don’t have to keep watching pan to see if it’s burning. Season with salt and pepper. When onion is tender, add the corn, cut up bell pepper, garlic, marjoram or herb of choice, and set aside to cool. I have also made this with 2 diced zucchini cooked with onions and didn’t think it added to taste.
3. This is a soft dough and I find it easiest to grease pyrex 9” pie plate and bake on metal sheet or use my Le Creuset cast iron 10” skillet. Put soft ball of dough onto skillet/pie dish, dust your fingers with some gf flour, press with your fingers. and press dough to reach up sides of pan. You are going to fold down edges of dough on side of pan on top of onion corn filling.
4. Spread the onion and corn mixture over base of the dough. Starting about 2 inches in from edge of onion mix, arrange the tomatoes in a single layer over the onions and season them with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the cheese over the tomatoes. Lift the edges of the dough and fold them inward over the filling, pleating as you go, to form a folded-over border. I use a thin plastic spatula and ‘flip’ the dough from edge of pan down onto filling.  I find this easier than trying to persuade dough away from side of pan with my fingers. Pinch together any tears in the dough. I have tried making this by rolling out and lifting dough and find pressing dough into pan is easier. 
5. Bake in preheated 375 * oven until the crust has browned and the cheese has melted, 40 to 50 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving. This is a rich, very ‘short’ pastry.  In a metal pan, the bottom crust is more thoroughly cooked. A totally different recipe said about serving a potato casserole with salsa, sliced avocado and sour cream.  I tried that but I thought it was too many extra flavors.

wilsonfarm.com recipes are online
Wilson Farm, 10 Pleasant Street, Lexington, MA 02421
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Egg-Free Chocolate Cake

From Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering

After asking a friend to share a new cake recipe, she pointed me to The Joy of Baking, and a chocolate cake that I could adapt to gluten-free, use butter or oil, make egg-free and didn’t use flaxseed meal, chia seeds, or any egg alternative. 

I’ve made this cake several times, it’s very quick and easy to make, everyday ingredients. Since gluten-free flours have little flavor compared to wheat flour I used light brown sugar rather than regular sugar. For laziness as well as to make it dairy-free, I have used both almond oil and avocado oil. Using melted butter would give more flavor. Interestingly if you Google this cake, there are quite a few recipes for it, many claiming authorship and changing quantities of ingredients. 

Gluten-Free and Egg-Free Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 1/3 cups King Arthur, all-purpose, gluten-free flour, no xanthan gum or baking powder. 
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup avocado oil, or almond oil
• 1 cup warm water 
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice or apple cider vinegar
• 2 teaspoons gluten-free vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon pure coffee extract (optional), zest of orange, or different gluten-free extracts

Chocolate Ganache

• 1 c, 6 ounces, gluten-free semi-sweet chocolate chips – I use Tollhouse
• 1 c, 8 fl oz heavy cream 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350*F (180* C) and place the oven rack in the center of the oven. Butter or spray an 8 or 9 inch (20 or 22cm) cake pan with a nonstick cooking spray, line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper, spray paper and dust pan with cocoa.
2. In a large bowl whisk or stir together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. Add the melted butter or oil, water, lemon juice or apple cider vinegar, vanilla extract, and coffee extract (if using). Beat all the ingredients together until well blended. Pour the wet batter into your pan and bake in preheated oven for about 28 – 30 minutes, or until the cake springs back when lightly pressed and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Don’t overcook it. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 10 – 15 minutes before removing the cake from the pan.

Chocolate Ganache: Heat cream in a microwave-safe jug for about 1 minute. Stir in the chocolate, and leave for a few minutes.  Stir until smooth.  I like to use an immersion blender to make the ganache totally smooth.  

Leave in the fridge for at least an hour so ganache thickens and then spread over top and sides of cake.

I also tried making this with ¾ cup milk and one egg rather than 1 c water.  The photo shows whole cake with ganache and chopped nuts. The cake rose more and was definitely moister.  Without the egg, I found edges of cake were a bit harder, not bad, just noticeable to me.  

Original recipes talk about putting dry ingredients in cake pan, adding wet ingredients, mixing and baking. I find it easier to mix in 4 c (1 ltr) pyrex jug and pour into cake pan.  Flour and cocoa tend to fly everywhere when mixed in shallow pan.

Note that unsweetened cocoa (Hershey’s regular) reacts with vinegar/lemon juice giving a reddish tinge, like red velvet cake.

Impossibly Easy Cheesecake

From Oonagh Williams of Royal Temptations Catering

I found the original wheat flour version of this cheesecake recipe on the Bisquick website and made it with gluten-free King Arthur flour. 

Cheesecake ingredients:

Makes 8 servings, over an inch deep

• ¾ cup milk, I used 2% Lactaid
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 2 eggs
• 2 x 8 oz packets of cream cheese, room temperature, cut into cubes
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup King Arthur gluten-free, all-purpose flour—no xanthan gum, no baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• pinch of salt

Topping Ingredients:

• 1 cup sour cream
• 2 Tablespoons sugar or honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Fruit

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F and grease a 9” glass pie plate
2. Put milk, vanilla, almond, eggs, sugar, flour, baking powder and salt in food processor. Blend on high speed for 15 seconds. Add cubed cream cheese and blend for 2 more minutes until no blobs of cream cheese remain. Scrape down the sides.
   1. If you don’t have a food processor, put cream cheese in 8 cup bowl, add milk, extracts and dry ingredients and beat until smooth. Then beat in eggs.
3. Pour cream cheese mix into a pie plate, it fills the pie plate but doesn’t overflow. Bake in preheated oven for about 40 minutes. Insert a knife into the center to check if it’s set or not. Roughly an inch around the outside will look golden brown, and center of cheesecake can have some cracks. Cool completely; I prefer it refrigerated overnight and then removed from the fridge about one hour before serving so texture softens.
4. To create the topping, mix the sour cream, honey/sugar, and vanilla extract together. 
5. Spread sour cream mix on top. Serve with fresh fruit, drizzle with chocolate ganache, lemon curd mixed with whipped cream, strawberry or raspberry sauce.